Close, competitive fight here from these two hard-headed competitors. Cote looked well up for this fight in the opening round and was controlling the action with his striking until Voelker took him down. Even then, Cote worked well off his back, throwing up several armbar attempts and landing some strikes too, which prevented Voelker from doing much offensive work from top control. Cote started the second round brightly too and was working some nice combinations of punches, though Voelker was demonstrating a good chin and while not offering the same level of offense was able to open a couple of small cuts to Cote’s nose and eye. He also landed a brief takedown, but Cote cancelled that out with one of his own right at the bell. Onto the final round and Voelker turned up the heat, getting into a toe-to-toe slugfest at the start of the round which he seemed to win, with Cote then looking to stall the action up against the cage. Later Voelker started to land some solid knees and then secured a takedown. Cote again looking for armbars from his back, but not really setting them up correctly and Voelker’s not in danger. Cote tries to get upright a couple of times, but Voelker easily takes him back down. It’s a good round for him, but the judges believe Cote won the first two, so he gets the decision win.

Darren Elkins defeats Antonio Carvalho by TKO at 3.06mins of Rd1

Elkins finished Carvalho early in this one, but the stoppage was controversial. Elkins initially hurt Carvalho with a hook that landed below the ear that left him badly wobbled, but he stayed on his feet. Elkins followed up with more strikes and a right hand floored Carvalho, but he bounced right back upright again. Unfortunately for him the referee had already stepped in prematurely to stop the fight when he saw him fall to the mat. Elkins would probably have finished the fight soon after anyway, but it’s unfortunate Carvalho didn’t get a little longer to try to gain his bearing and make a comeback.

Jordan Mein defeats Dan Miller by TKO at 4.42mins of Rd1

Welcome to the UFC Jordan Mein! The former Strikeforce fighter continued his impressive striking here, but not before Miller had his moments early in the round. Miller looked confident in the early stages and landed the first blows before securing a takedown. Miller looked for an armbar and it looked like the fight might be over, but Mein did very well to adjust his position and get out of danger before getting back upright. Then Mein started to settle in and get some offense going on the feet. It didn’t take long for him to find success, dropping Miller with a punch, but opting not to go to the ground with him. Miller got up, but the spring had been taken out of his step and Mein was looking to land more shots. He clipped him with a hook and then began digging rapid-fire punches to the mid-section and Miller dropped back down to the canvas. Mein rained down ground and pound and with his opponent simply covering up the referee stepped in to stop the contest, making Mein the first fighter to ever finish Miller inside the distance.

Both fighters fought cautiously in the first round, appearing to be respecting each other’s striking prowess a little too much. They started to loosen up in the second though and it was Makdessi who was making the bigger impact. Despite the fact that both men have a plethora of exotic offensive options available to them it was actually classic boxing fundamentals that were working for ‘The Bull’, with the jab in particular being his best weapon. He repeatedly tagged Cruickshank with punches in the second and third round, only occasionally opting for a kick to the legs or upstairs. Meanwhile, the punches and close range that Makdessi was working from appeared to throw Cruickshank off his game and his flashy techniques weren’t landing, while a few takedown attempts were easily stuffed. Makdessi finished the fight strongly and there was little doubt about who would get the judges decision here.

Rick Story defeats Quinn Mulhern by TKO at 3.05mins of Rd1

Story was the convincing winner here. He had the better of Mulhern in the stand-up department straight away and was waring him down with punches and kicks early before a left hand to the eye had Mulhern wincing in pain and hitting reverse gear. Story followed and took advantage of his injured opponent with a flurry of strikes, with another left causing Mulhern to sink to the canvas, with a few ground and pound strikes finishing the job.

T.J. Dillashaw defeats Issei Tamura by KO at 0.26mins of Rd2

Good first round for Dillashaw, but the real action took place early in the second. In the opening minute of the round Dillashaw faked down low then went upstairs with what looked like a head kick, but it was the knee that connected with Tamura’s head and dropped him. Dillashaw quickly pounced and unleashed a barrage of right hands to his downed opponent which sealed the KO victory.

George Roop defeats Reuben Duran by decision (29-28 x2, 30-27)

Close fight to start of the evening. Roop started off the fight brightly on the feet, but before long Duran wobbled him with a punch and also secured a takedown, though Roop utilized some nice elbow strikes from his back. In the second it was Roop who was able to get Duran down and took his back looking for a rear-naked choke against the cage, but couldn’t get it. Duran later got on top himself, but again Roop did well from his back with offensive strikes. Roop then got the better of the final round with better clinch work, some striking and a little ground work, while Duran seemed to be struggling to find his second wind.

Ross launched MMA Insight (previously FightOfTheNight.com) in 2009 as a way to channel his passion for the sport of mixed martial arts. He's since penned countless news stories and live fight reports along with dozens of feature articles as the lead writer for the site, reaching millions of fans in the process.

POPULAR CATEGORY

MMA Insight is dedicated to bringing you the best in Mixed Martial Arts coverage with a particular focus on the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Along with covering the latest news stories and event results from the world of MMA on a daily basis, the main focus of the site is to provide quality, in-depth articles, insight and opinion on the major talking points in this ever evolving sport.